Thursday, November 28, 2019

Meet AICAN, a machine that operates as an autonomous artist

Meet AICAN, a machine that operates as an autonomous artistMeet AICAN, a machine that operates as an autonomous artistWhen artificial intelligence has been used to create works of art, a human artist has always exerted a significant element of control over the creative process.But what if a machine were programmed to create art on its own, with little to no human involvement? What if it were the primary creative force in the process? And if it were to create something novel, engaging and moving, who should get credit for this work?At Rutgers species AI Lab, we created AICAN, a program that could be thought of as a nearly autonomous artist that has learned existing styles and aesthetics and can generate innovate images of its own.People genuinely like AICANs work, and cant distinguish it from that of human artists. Its pieces have been exhibited worldwide, and one even recently sold for $16,000 at an auction.Psychedelic, an image created by the algorithm AICAN. Ahmed Elgammal, Author providedAn emphasis on noveltyWhen designing the algorithm, we adhered to a theory proposed by psychologist Colin Martindale.He hypothesized that many artists will seek to make their works appealing by rejecting existing forms, subjects and styles that the public has become accustomed to. Artists seem to intuitively understand that theyre more likely to arouse viewers and capture their attention by doing something new.In other words, novelty reigns.So when programming AICAN, we used an algorithm called the creative adversarial network, which compels AICAN to contend with two opposing forces. On one end, it tries to learn the aesthetics of existing works of art. On the other, it will be penalized if, when creating a work of its own, it too closely emulates an established style.At the same time, AICAN adheres to what Martindale calls the least effort principle, in which he argues that too much novelty will turn off viewers.This ensures that the art generated will be novel but wont de part too much from whats considered acceptable. Ideally, it will create something new that builds off what already exists.Letting AICAN looseAs for our role, we dont select specific images to teach AICAN a certain aesthetic or style, as many artists who create AI art will do.Instead, weve fed the algorithm 80,000 images that represent the wildwestfilm art canon over the previous five centuries. Its somewhat like an artist taking an art history survey course, with no particular focus on a style or genre.At the click of a button, the machine can create an image that can then be printed. The works will often surprise us in their range, sophistication and variation.The Birth of Venus by AICAN. Ahmed Elgammal, Author providedUsing our prior work on quantifying creativity, AICAN can judge how creative its individual pieces are. Since it has also learned the titles used by artists and art historians in the past, the algorithm can even give names to the works it generates. It named one Orgy it called another The Beach at Pourville.The Beach at Pourville by AICAN. Ahmed Elgammal, Author providedThe algorithm favors generating more abstract works than figurative ones. Our research on how the machine is able to understand the evolution of art history could offer an explanation. Because its tasked with creating something new, AICAN is likely building off more recent trends in art history, like abstract art, which came into vogue in the 20th century.Can humans tell the difference?There welches still the question of how people would respond to AICANs work.To test this, we showed subjects AICAN images and works created by human artists that were showcased at Art Basel, an annual fair that features cutting-edge contemporary art. We asked the participants whether each was made by a machine or an artist.We found that humans couldnt tell the difference Seventy-five percent of the time, they thought the AICAN-generated images had been produced by a human artist.They didnt simply have a tough time distinguishing between the two. They genuinely enjoyed the computer-generated art, using words like having visual structure, inspiring and communicative when describing AICANs work.Beginning in October 2017, we started exhibiting AICANs work at venues in Frankfurt, Los Angles, New York City and San Francisco, with a different set of images for each show.At the exhibitions, we heard one question, time and again Whos the artist?As a scientist, I created the algorithm, but I have no control over what the machine will generate.The machine chooses the style, the subject, the composition, the colors and the texture. Yes, I set the framework, but the algorithm is fully at the helm when it comes to the elements and the principles of the art it generates.For this reason, in the all exhibitions where the art was shown, I gave credit solely to the algorithm AICAN for each artwork. At Miamis Art Basel this December, eight pieces, also credited to AICAN, will be shown.Samples of artworks generated by AICAN that will be shown in the SCOPE Art Fair in conjunction with Art Basel Miami in December 2018. Ahmed ElgammalThe first artwork that was offered for sale from the AICAN collection, which AICAN titled St. George Killing the Dragon, was sold for $16,000 at an auction in New York in November 2017. (Most of the proceeds went to fund research at Rutgers and the Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques in France.)St. George Killing the Dragon was sold for $16,000. Ahmed ElgammalWhat the computer cant doStill, theres something missing in AICANs artistic process.The algorithm might create appealing images. But it lives in an isolated creative space that lacks social context.Human artists, on the other hand, are inspired by people, places and politics. They make art to tell stories and make sense of the world.AICAN lacks any of that. It can, however, generate artwork that human curators can then ground in our society and connect to whats happening around us. Th ats just what we did with Alternative Facts The Multi Faces of Untruth, a title we gave to a series of portraits generated by AICAN that struck us with its timely serendipity.Alternative Facts The Multi Faces of Untruth by AICAN was exhibited at the 2018 Frankfurt Book Fair. Ahmed ElgammalOf course, just because machines can almost autonomously produce art, it doesnt mean they will replace artists. It simply means that artists will have an additional creative tool at their disposal, one they could even collaborate with.I often compare AI art to photography. When photography was first invented in the early 19th century, it wasnt considered art after all, a machine was doing much of the work.The tastemakers resisted, but eventually relented A century later, photography became an established fine art genre. Today, photographs are exhibited in museums and auctioned off at astronomical prices.I have no doubt that art produced by artificial intelligence will go down the same path.To read When the Line Between Machine and Artist Becomes Blurred, the first part of this two-part series on AI art, click here.Ahmed Elgammal, Professor of Computer Vision, Rutgers UniversityThis article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Lease Assignment Agreement FAQ - Australia

Lease Assignment Agreement FAQ - AustraliaLease Assignment Agreement FAQ - AustraliaDefinitionsWho qualifies as an agent?An agent is defined as a person that is licenced by the state in which the property is located to assist all real estate transactions such as property ausverkauf, leases, and assignments. An agent is typically either a real estate broker/ sales agent, or an attorney/lawyer.Who is the Assignor?The Assignor is the Tenant from the original lease, who is now transferring his/her entire interest in the lease to someone else, i.e., the Assignee.Who is the Assignee?The Assignee is the person who receives the lease interest from the original Tenant (the Assignor), and who becomes the new Tenant.What does the term consideration mean?Consideration refers to what the Assignor received from the Assignee in exchange for transferring the Assignors lease interest to the Assignee. Typically, the consideration will be a specified amount of money.What are encumbrances?Encumbrances a re interests held by other people that affect the title and potentially the use and possession of the property by the Assignor and Assignee. An example may be the right of someone else to use a workshop or parking space that is parte of the rented property.If the property is a residential unit located above a commercial property, what type of lease is it?This situation would be classified as a residential lease, even though the property is contained within a commercial building.Lease Assignment InformationWhat is the governing law of my Lease Assignment?The governing law will be the jurisdiction in which the leased premises is located, regardless of which jurisdictions the Assignor, Assignee and Landlord reside.What is the Master Lease?The Master Lease is the lease that was originally signed between the Landlord and the Assignor. Unless otherwise noted in the assignment, all of the terms and obligations in the Master Lease continue with the new tenancy created by the Assignment as between the Assignee and the Landlord.Do I need to provide the Assignee with a copy of the Master Lease?Yes, the Assignee is entitled to a copy of the Master Lease. The Assignor can include a copy of the Master Lease with the Lease Assignment, or can deliver a copy directly to the Assignee.What does Release of Assignment mean?This phrase addresses the issue of whether the Assignor is liable for damages if the Assignee breaches the terms of the Master Lease. If the Assignor is not liable for the conduct of the Assignee, then the Landlord must go after the Assignee if the Assignee causes damages to the property. However, if the Assignor is liable for the Assignees conduct, then the Landlord can seek compensation from both the Assignor and/or the Assignee for property damage caused by the Assignee.Do I need the consent of the Landlord to assign my lease to another person?Unless the Master Lease explicitly permits the Assignor to assign the lease without the Landlords consent, the Assig nor must obtain the Landlords written consent to assign the lease to someone else.Do I need to create the Landlords Consent to Assign as part of the Lease Assignment?The Landlords Consent to Assign should only be included in the Lease Assignment if the Landlord has not previously provided a written consent to that assignment. What is the maximum term for which I can make the Lease Assignment?There is no statutory limit set by law, but the assignment cannot exceed the remaining duration of the Master Leases term.As the Assignee, can I assign the lease to someone else?Usually the Assignee cannot further assign the lease without the written consent of the Landlord.Who should sign the Lease Assignment Agreement?Both the Assignor and Assignee must sign the agreement, and it is strongly recommended that at least 2 witnesses also sign it.I do not know when the Lease Assignment will be signed. Can I fill in the date later?Yes, by selecting Unsure as the date the agreement will be signed, a blank line will be inserted into the contract so that you can add the correct date after printing the document.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

A Free, Modern, Beautiful Way to Write Your Resume Well

A Free, Modern, Beautiful Way to Write Your Resume WellA Free, Modern, Beautiful Way to Write Your Resume WellWe launched the worlds best resume writer this morning. Based on our decade-plus of experience helping Americas top professionals, weve put all of our best thinking into Resume Builder, available here at www.theladders.com/resume-builder.Since Ladders launched in 2003, weve assessed millions of resumes, filmed HR people scanning your resumes, and even hand-written tens of thousands of resumes for members like you.We made Resume Builder in order to capture all of that knowledge in a wonderfully easy and effective productEasy to followwell walk you through a step-by-step process, that buildsyourresume based onyourexperience, not canned templates that make your resume sound generic.Achievement-focusedwe help you quantify your past accomplishments so that future employers can immediately start seeing you as a problem-solver who will contribute to their success.Modern designour cl ean formatting attracts employer attention and maximizes readability - both for humans and for computers.Inline assistancetips as you type help you craft effective responses that align with resume best practices.Heres an example built with our new toolIn combination with its companion product, Resume Reviewer, our Ladders suite of resume products represent the free, modern, beautiful way to write your resume well.Visit Resume Builder to get your gorgeous, free resume today.Im rooting for you